Hollywood actor Ted Raimi is a big fan of Ajay Devgn’s Singham franchise and Indian cinema as a whole, particularly action-packed entertainers that seamlessly blend music, dance, and a kaleidoscope of emotions. According to Ted, India has mastered the art of crafting action films that have eluded filmmakers globally. Also read: Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari: ‘We should stop addressing filmmakers as a female filmmaker’
In an interview with Hindustan Times, Ted, whose latest film Failure was screened at the second edition of Red Lorry Film Festival, a festival curated by BookMyShow, gets candid about his love for Indian cinema and more.
On his love for Indian films
Despite never having visited India, Ted’s fascination with Indian cinema has only continued to grow, driving him to delve deeper into the vibrant world of Bollywood films.
“I have not come to India. I always wanted to go to India. The very few Indian movies that do make it over to America, I eagerly await them and watch them all the time. I especially love the action movies. I think you guys make some of the greatest action movies of all time without doubt,” Ted tells us.
When asked if he has a favourite Bollywood director, Ted admits he has but can’t recall the name.
“I don’t want to mispronounce it so badly that you don’t understand. I saw it a couple of years ago. It is probably my favourite Indian action movie,” he shares, adding, “I should have written it down”.
He goes on to share that he saw the film in the theatres, mentioning, “It is about a super cop who just goes on and gets bad guys. He is a family man and he loves this girl”.
When asked if it was the Ajay Devgn-starrer Singham that sparked his interest, Ted’s face lit up with excitement as he enthusiastically agreed. “I just love Singham and its sequel,” he mentions.
On action films in India
Talking about action films in India, Ted shares, “I love watching Indian films. They are great films. The Indian action movies come with a mix of music, dance, comedy and action. It is incredibly unique to the entire world. Nobody has that style like you guys do”.
“Even when people try to imitate it, it fails. They fall right on his face. Your film industry and your culture can create those movies better than anybody,” shares the actor, known for projects such as The Evil Dead, Evil Dead II, Spider-Man trilogy, Candyman, and Supernatural.
On his career in Hollywood
He was most recently seen in Failure, which is shot in an unbroken 87-minute take. The film follows business tycoon James (Ted) as he faces a crushing bank debt deadline, and the dilemma when he is forced to choose between financial collapse or murder.
“It was the most challenging film that I had to do so far. It was shot in one long take with no cuts. That made me bring up a lot of experience that I have had doing theatre here in America,” he shares.
Here, the 59-year-old actor rues that younger actors are not exploring the medium of theatre, which is directly impacting their craft.
“Actors such as myself are now a dying breed. People no longer start in theatre. And that’s a shame. Because if you study theater, you study the way to communicate instantly with the audience…. This is something that modern actors simply rob themselves of. That isn’t to say there aren’t great actors anymore. There certainly are. It’s just that I feel that they are cheating themselves out of a part of the business that they could benefit greatly from,” he ends.
